It could just be that Latvia is on the verge of a political crisis.
On Sept. 25, Latvian Prime Minister Aigars Kalvitis decided to suspend the head of the anti-corruption bureau chief Aleksejs Loskutovs (pictured) under dodgy pretext – for the financial misappropriation, revealed in a June audit.
Allegedly several thousands of lats have been misappropriated in the bureau, however the State Auditor repeatedly said that the audit found no significant violations – no more or less than in any other government ministry – that would justify the Kalvitis’ decision.
The government formed a seven-member legally-dubious commission to investigate Loskutovs.
Led by the prosecuting attorney general, the commission consisted of six party hacks. No one has known whether the commission can make a decision unanimously or by a simple majority.
In its report, the commission presented its findings and left the final decision on the lap of the Kalvitis government, making that decision unanimously.
At the same time as the US Ambassador to Latvia admonished Latvians to fight for democracy and common values, the Latvian government decided to ask the parliament to dismiss Loskutovs based on the commission report.
After the decision, the commission member Dzintars Jaundzeikars said: “The harshest violation is that Loskutovs doesn’t follow the law, but walks around embassies and discredit the country.”
However, the prosecuting attorney Janis Maizitis told media that Loskutovs should remain in his office.
The charges against Loskutovs mounted by the time the evening news rolled out. The party leaders who three years ago elevated Loskutovs to his post, then claimed he misappropriated funds, now add a bonus charge that he is impossible to work with.
They say Loskutovs had disobeyed the Kalvitis decision for suspension and have been showing up for work. Loskutovs said that by law, only parliament or the prosecuting attorney can suspend him. The law was written in such a way to prevent politicians from messing around in the work of the anti-corruption bureau created to oversee them.
The government failed to convince the people that it was doing the right thing because the government have become so arrogant and self-assured, in part because it holds the majority in the Parliament and it has become fearless.
For now, the decision rests in the hands of 100 members of parliament who may be debating the Loskutovs factor on Thursday. Of the four-party coalition, only two parties – the Fatherlanders and the Greens – have questionable discipline to adhere to the party line, whether they have enough votes to defeat the measure remains to be seen.
Out of 58 coalition votes, the Greens hold 18 votes and the Fatherlanders hold 8. The Fatherlanders who had not been happy with the coalition so far may break ranks. If so, it will take 8 MPs to kill it.
